Kiernan: No end in sight to NY scandals

By: John Kiernan January 29, 2009Comments Off on Kiernan: No end in sight to NY scandals

You have to wonder what the rest of the country thinks about New York politics. There have been so many twists and turns in the last year that no Hollywood scriptwriter would have the nerve to present a story like this. Just look at the confusion surrounding the selection of our new U.S. senator.

New York faces a deficit that seems to be insurmountable. When Wall Street prospers, New York state revenues soar. But Wall Street has been on a steep decline along with the rest of the economy, and the downslide perhaps will continue well into this year. Consequently, because state revenues will steadily decline, the battle over the New York state budget, that according to the state Constitution should be adopted by April 1, might go well beyond the legal deadline. With these problems, Gov. David Paterson, who a year ago was not the governor, did not need any other problems.

Last year, when Hillary Clinton was a candidate for president and when Eliot Spitzer was still governor, politicians across the state assumed that Gov. Spitzer would have to appoint someone to take Sen. Clinton’s place in the U.S. Senate. Clinton, of course, lost the nomination for president and Spitzer resigned in a scandal, but shortly after President Obama’s election, it became clear that Mrs. Clinton would be leaving the Senate anyway.

Enter Caroline Kennedy, who declared her interest in being appointed to Mrs. Clinton’s Senate seat more than a month ago. Kennedy had never held or sought public office, but she had been a crucial supporter of Obama.

Ms. Kennedy’s foray into New York politics was clumsy and unprofessional. Her press encounters and upstate tours were handled badly. She received widespread criticism from both state political leaders and from the press. Yet, until the middle of last week, she was reported to be the favorite for the seat even though there were many other seasoned politicians available, such as New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi and Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Steve Israel.

About 10 days ago, Ms. Kennedy withdrew on the verge of Gov. Paterson making the appointment. Kennedy’s withdrawal was mysterious, and afterward charges were hurled back and forth between the Kennedy and Paterson camps.

Last Friday, Gov. Paterson, in a surprise announcement, appointed Senator Kirsten Gillibrand to take Mrs. Clinton’s seat. Sen. Gillibrand has won two impressive victories as a Democrat in an overwhelmingly Republican district, but only has a little more than two years experience. Democratic Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, from Mineola, immediately declared that Sen. Gillibrand’s pro-gun record was not acceptable. It remains to be seen whether the new senator will face primary challenges when she must run for the balance of Mrs. Clinton’s term in 2010. Gov. Paterson has been widely criticized for how he handled the appointment process and many Democrats are angry.

Rep. Peter King (R-Seaford) has already indicated that he will seek the Senate seat. King is a national expert on homeland security, and has won elections by large margins in his district.

On the same afternoon that Gov. Paterson appointed Sen. Gillibrand, former State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno was indicted for mail and wire fraud. Another New York politician now faces the criminal justice system. Last January, Bruno and Spitzer were battling over the state budget. Now, both are out of office.

These bizarre happenings all started with the Spitzer scandal last March. We still have a month to go before the year is up. Stay tuned.